Appomattox Campaign

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Appomattox Campaign

The Appomattox Campaign (March 29, 1865 – April 9, 1865) was a series of battles fought in Virginia

Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia is an United States U.S. state on the East Coast of the United States of the Southern United States. The state is known as the "Old Dominion" and sometimes as "Mother of Presidents", because it is the birthplace of Lists of United States Presidents by place of birth#By state....
that culminated in the surrender of Confederate

Confederate States Army

The Confederate States Army was a military organization whose primary mission was to provide the necessary forces and capabilities to support the National Security and defense of the Confederate States of America during its brief existence from 1861 to 1865....
General Robert E. Lee

Robert E. Lee

Robert Edward Lee , was a career United States United States Army officer , an engineer, and among the most celebrated generals in American history....
's Army of Northern Virginia

Army of Northern Virginia

The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War of the American Civil War....
and the effective end of the American Civil War

Conclusion of the American Civil War

File:AppomattoxCourtHouse.jpgThis is a timeline of the conclusion of the American Civil War which includes important battles, skirmishes, raids and other events of 1865....
.

lass="link1" onMouseover='showByLink("m3778675",this)' onMouseout='hide("m3778675")'href="http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/Union_Army">Union

Union Army

The Union Army was the army that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S....
forces under Lt. Gen.

Lieutenant General (United States)

In the United States Army, the United States Marine Corps and the United States Air Force, lieutenant general is a 3 star rank general officer rank, with the U.S....
Ulysses S. Grant

Ulysses S. Grant

Ulysses S. Grant, born Hiram Ulysses Grant , was an United States general and the List of Presidents of the United States President of the United States ....
had besieged Lee's army around the city of Petersburg, Virginia

Petersburg, Virginia

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The Appomattox Campaign (March 29, 1865 – April 9, 1865) was a series of battles fought in Virginia

Virginia

Confederate States Army

Robert E. Lee

Robert Edward Lee , was a career United States United States Army officer , an engineer, and among the most celebrated generals in American history....
's Army of Northern Virginia

Army of Northern Virginia

Conclusion of the American Civil War

File:AppomattoxCourtHouse.jpgThis is a timeline of the conclusion of the American Civil War which includes important battles, skirmishes, raids and other events of 1865....
.

Background

Union

Union Army

The Union Army was the army that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S....
forces under Lt. Gen.

Lieutenant General (United States)

In the United States Army, the United States Marine Corps and the United States Air Force, lieutenant general is a 3 star rank general officer rank, with the U.S....
Ulysses S. Grant

Ulysses S. Grant

Petersburg, Virginia

Petersburg is an independent city in Virginia, United States located on the Appomattox River and 23 miles south of Richmond, Virginia. The population was 33,740 as of the United States Census 2000....
, since June 1864. The two armies spent the winter in an elaborate series of trenches, stretching almost 35 miles (56 km), foreshadowing the tactics to be used in World War I

World War I

World War I, or the First World War , was a global military conflict which involved the Great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies of World War I and the Central Powers....
. As Grant had inched to the west over the winter, the Confederates extended their lines to compensate, but they were stretched too thin, having only about 1,000 men per mile (625 men/km) of defensive line. Lee knew that his army could not survive a siege indefinitely and looked for ways to escape his predicament as spring arrived, the rains diminished, and the local road system became passable again.

The Appomattox campaign was preceded by the unsuccessful Battle of Fort Stedman

Battle of Fort Stedman

The Battle of Fort Stedman was fought on March 25, 1865, during the final days of the American Civil War. The Union Army fortification in the siege lines around Petersburg, Virginia, was attacked in a pre-dawn Confederate States of America assault by troops led by Major General John B....
on March 25, 1865, the concluding battle in the Richmond-Petersburg Campaign

Siege of Petersburg

The Richmond-Petersburg Campaign was a series of battles around Petersburg, Virginia, fought from June 9, 1864, to March 25, 1865, during the American Civil War....
. This final attempt to break the siege resulted in heavy Confederate casualties. Lee knew that Grant would soon move against the only remaining Confederate supply line, the South Side Railroad, and that would doom his army.

Lee was by now the commander of all Confederate armies. (For almost three years he had commanded only the northern Virginia forces, despite his fame throughout the Confederacy.) His plan was to extricate himself from the Federal grip at Petersburg, withdraw to the southwest, resupply his starving army at Lynchburg, Virginia

Lynchburg, Virginia

Lynchburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The population was 71,282 at the 2007 United States Census. Located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains along the banks of the James River , Lynchburg is known as the "City of Seven Hills", "The Hill City" and sometimes described as "A City Unto Itself" mostly in ref...
, and head south. There, the Army of Northern Virginia might be able to link up with Gen. Joseph E. Johnston

Joseph E. Johnston

Joseph Eggleston Johnston was a career United States Army officer, serving with distinction in the Mexican-American War and Seminole Wars, and was also one of the most senior general officers in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War....
's forces in North Carolina

North Carolina

North Carolina is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Seaboard in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north....
, defeat the Union army under Maj. Gen.

Major General

Major General or Major-General is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of Sergeant Major General. A Major General is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of Lieutenant General and senior to the ranks of Brigadier and Brigadier General....
William T. Sherman that was pursuing Johnston, and then return to strike a combined blow at Grant. In preparation for his breakout, he moved forces to his right flank.

Grant, meanwhile, brought additional forces to bear. Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan

Philip Sheridan

Philip Henry Sheridan was a career United States Army officer and a Union Army General officer in the American Civil War. His career was noted for his rapid rise to Major general and his close association with Lieutenant general Ulysses S....
had returned from the Shenandoah Valley

Valley Campaigns of 1864

The Valley Campaigns of 1864 were American Civil War operations and battles that took place in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia from May to October 1864....
. Maj. Gen. Edward Ord

Edward Ord

Edward Otho Cresap Ord was the designer of Fort Sam Houston, and a United States Army officer who saw action in the Seminole War, the Indian Wars, and the American Civil War....
's Army of the James

Army of the James

The Army of the James was a Union army Army that was composed of units from the Department of Virginia and North Carolina and served along the James River during the final operations of the American Civil War in Virginia....
came up to the Petersburg lines, which freed up the corps of Maj. Gens. Gouverneur K. Warren

Gouverneur K. Warren

Gouverneur Kemble Warren was a civil engineer and prominent General officer in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He is best remembered for arranging the last-minute defense of Little Round Top during the Battle of Gettysburg and is often referred to as the "Hero of Little Round Top." His subsequent service as a corps commander an...
and Andrew A. Humphreys

Andrew A. Humphreys

Andrew Atkinson Humphreys , was a career United States Army officer, civil engineer, and a Union Army General officer in the American Civil War....
for offensive action against Lee.

Battles

The Appomattox Campaign comprised the following battles:

Union offensive

Battle of Lewis's Farm

The Battle of Lewis's Farm was fought on March 29, 1865, in Dinwiddie County, Virginia, during the American Civil War. It was the opening of the Appomattox Campaign, in which Confederate States Army General Robert E....
(March 29 1865)

Sheridan's cavalry and Warren's V Corps

V Corps (ACW)

The V Corps was a unit of the Union Army Army of the Potomac during the American Civil War....
started the Federal offensive by swinging southwest past Dinwiddie Court House in hopes of enveloping Lee's right flank.

Battle of White Oak Road

}|-||}The Battle of White Oak Road was fought on March 31, 1865, during the American Civil War. It set the stage for the Confederate States of America defeat at the Battle of Five Forks the following day....
(March 31)

Lee shifted his forces to counter the Union move around his flank. Warren assaulted Confederate trenches along White Oak Road but was repulsed temporarily by a counterattack from Maj. Gen. Bushrod Johnson

Bushrod Johnson

Bushrod Rust Johnson was a teacher, university chancellor, and Confederate Army General officer in the American Civil War. He was one of a handful of Confederate generals who were born and raised in the Northern United States....
.

Battle of Dinwiddie Court House

The Battle of Dinwiddie Court House was a minor engagement in the Appomattox Campaign of the American Civil War that was the immediate prelude to the decisive Battle of Five Forks....
(March 31)

Sheridan's cavalry movement to the court house and around Lee's flank was blocked by cavalry under Maj. Gen. W.H.F. "Rooney" Lee

William Henry Fitzhugh Lee

William Henry Fitzhugh Lee , known as Rooney Lee or W.H.F. Lee, was the second son of Robert E. Lee and Mary Anna Custis Lee. He was a planter, a Confederate States Army cavalry General officer in the American Civil War, and later a member of the U.S....
and infantry under Maj. Gen. George Pickett

George Pickett

George Edward Pickett was a career United States Army officer who became a general in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War....
.

Battle of Five Forks

The Battle of Five Forks was fought on April 1, 1865, southwest of Petersburg, Virginia, in Dinwiddie County, during the Appomattox Campaign of the American Civil War....
(April 1)

In the decisive battle of this campaign, Warren and Sheridan dislodged Pickett and Rooney Lee from a critical crossroads that protected their supply lines. Over 4,500 Confederate soldiers surrendered. Lee advised the Confederate government the next morning to abandon the cities of Petersburg and Richmond, Virginia

Richmond, Virginia

Richmond is the Capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. Like all Virginia municipalities incorporated as cities, it is an independent city and not part of any county....
. His plan at this point was to move his forces from the two cities to cross the Appomattox River

Appomattox River

The Appomattox River is a tributary of the James River , approximately 137 miles , in central and eastern Virginia in the United States, named for the Appomattocs Indian tribe who lived along its lower banks in the 17th century....
and meet up at Amelia Court House, where they could be resupplied at the Richmond and Danville Railroad

Richmond and Danville Railroad

The Richmond and Danville Railroad was chartered in Virginia in the United States in 1847. The portion between Richmond, Virginia and Danville, Virginia was completed in 1856....
from stocks evacuated from Richmond. They would then proceed to Danville

Danville, Virginia

Danville is an independent city in Virginia, bounded by Pittsylvania County, Virginia and Caswell County, North Carolina. It was the last Capital of the Confederate States of America....
, the destination of the fleeing Confederate government, and then south to meet Johnston.

Third Battle of Petersburg

Battle of Petersburg III

The Third Battle of Petersburg, also known as the Breakthrough at Petersburg or the Fall of Petersburg, was a decisive Union Army assault on the Confederate States Army trenches, ending the ten-month Siege of Petersburg and leading to the fall of Petersburg, Virginia and Richmond, Virginia, Virginia....
(April 2)

Back at the entrenchments around Petersburg, Maj. Gen. George G. Meade's Army of the Potomac

Army of the Potomac

The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War of the American Civil War....
launched a four-corps

Corps

A Corps is either a large formation , or an administrative grouping of troops within an armed force with a common function such as Artillery or Signals representing an arm of service....
assault on the remaining Confederate lines, which managed to hang on by a thread. Confederate corps commander Lt. Gen. A.P. Hill was killed in this battle.

Battle of Sutherland's Station

The Battle of Sutherland's Station was an American Civil War conflict fought on April 2, 1865, in Dinwiddie, Virginia during the Appomattox Campaign....
(April 2)

The Union finally seized the Southside Railroad, cutting off Lee's supplies. On this date, Lt. Gen. James Longstreet

James Longstreet

James Longstreet was one of the foremost Confederate States Army General officers of the American Civil War and the principal subordinate to General Robert E....
's corps crossed the James River

James River (Virginia)

The James River in the U.S. state of Virginia is a long river, including its Jackson River source. It drains a Drainage basin comprising . The watershed includes about 4% open water and an area with a population of 2.5 million people ....
to reinforce Petersburg. The city of Richmond was evacuated that night, and the Confederate government fled. Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewell

Richard S. Ewell

Richard Stoddert Ewell was a career United States Army officer and a Confederate States Army General officer during the American Civil War. He achieved fame as a senior commander under Stonewall Jackson and Robert E....
, in charge of the city's defenses, was ordered to destroy anything of military value. Civilians rioted and great conflagrations engulfed the city.

Confederate retreat

Battle of Namozine Church

The Battle of Namozine Church was a minor engagement on April 3, 1865, in Amelia County, Virginia during the American Civil War's Appomattox Campaign....
(April 3 1865)

A minor cavalry skirmish occurred. Lee reached Amelia Court House on April 4 and found that the expected rations had not arrived; they had not been placed on the trains escaping Richmond, and those in supply wagon trains had been captured by Union cavalry. With 30,000 hungry men to feed, Lee chose to remain in the area for the rest of the day, sending out foraging parties, most of which came up with few provisions. This was a tactical error on Lee's part (although an understandable one) because it allowed Union cavalry time to erase Lee's head start in his retreat.

Battle of Amelia Springs

The Battle of Amelia Springs was a minor engagement in the Appomattox Campaign of the American Civil War. It was the immediate prelude to the Battle of Sayler's Creek....
(April 5)

Another minor cavalry skirmish. Also on April 5, Lee discovered that his route to Danville was blocked by fast-moving Union cavalry. His only remaining option was to move west on a long march, without food, to Lynchburg. But the Confederate Commissary General promised Lee that he would send 80,000 rations to Farmville

Farmville, Virginia

Farmville is a town in Cumberland County, Virginia and Prince Edward County, Virginia counties in the U.S. state of Virginia. The population was 6,845 at the United States Census 2000....
, 25 miles (40 km) to the west.

Battle of Sayler's Creek

}|-||}The Battle of Sayler's Creek was fought April 6, 1865, southwest of Petersburg, Virginia, as part of the Appomattox Campaign, in the final days of the American Civil War....
(April 6)

Nearly a quarter of the Confederate army (about 8,000 men, the heart of two corps) was cut off and forced to surrender by Sheridan, Humphreys, and Maj. Gen. Charles Griffin (replacing Warren, who was relieved by Sheridan after Five Forks). Many of the Confederate supply trains were also captured.

Battle of Rice's Station

The Battle of Rice's Station was a minor engagement in Appomattox Campaign of the American Civil War that was the immediate prelude to the Battle of Sayler's Creek....
(April 6)

A skirmish that occurred as Longstreet's corps arrived from Petersburg. His corps crossed the High Bridge across the Appomattox River.

Battle of Cumberland Church

The Battle of Cumberland Church was fought on April 7, 1865, as part of the Appomattox Campaign of the American Civil War.Near 2 p.m. on April 7, the advance of the Union Army II Corps encountered Confederate States Army forces entrenched on high ground near Cumberland Church....
(April 7)

The Union II Corps

II Corps (ACW)

There were five corps in the Union Army designated as II Corps during the American Civil War.* Army of the Cumberland, II Corps commanded by Thomas L....
(Humphreys) struck at the Confederate rear but was held at bay.

Battle of High Bridge

}|-||}The Battle of High Bridge was fought on April 6 and April 7, 1865, near the end of the Appomattox Campaign of the American Civil War. On April 6, the Confederate States Army cavalry fought stubbornly to secure the Appomattox River bridges....
(April 6–April 7)

After the bulk of Lee's remaining army crossed the Appomattox River, Longstreet's rear guard burned the bridges behind them. The Union II Corps managed to extinguish the blazes on two of the bridges, and they crossed the river and caught up with the Confederates at Farmville. The cavalry of Maj. Gen. Fitzhugh Lee

Fitzhugh Lee

Fitzhugh Lee , nephew of Robert E. Lee, was a Confederate States Army cavalry General officer in the American Civil War, Governor of Virginia, diplomat, and United States Army general in the Spanish-American War....
was able to hold off the Union infantry until nightfall, but Lee was forced to continue his march to the west under this pressure, depriving his men the opportunity to eat the Farmville rations they had waited so long to receive. Their next stop would be Appomattox Station, 25 miles (40 km) west, where a ration train was waiting. On the night of April 7, Lee received from Grant a letter proposing that the Army of Northern Virginia should surrender. Lee demurred, retaining one last hope that his army could get to Appomattox Station before he was trapped. He returned a noncommittal letter asking about the surrender terms Grant might propose.

Battle of Appomattox Station

The Battle of Appomattox Station was fought April 8, 1865, during the Appomattox Campaign of the American Civil War. Major General#United States George Armstrong Custer's Union Army cavalry, en route to Appomattox Station, clashed with the reserve artillery of the Confederate States Army Third Corps, Army of Northern Virginia, under Colonel R...
(April 8)

The cavalry division of George A. Custer seized a supply train and 25 guns, effectively blocking Lee's path. Grant sent a letter to Lee offering generous surrender terms, as urged by President Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln was the List of Presidents of the United States President of the United States. He successfully led the country through its greatest internal crisis, the American Civil War, preserving the Union and ending slavery....
, and proposing a meeting to discuss them.

Battle of Appomattox Court House (April 9)

In Lee's final stand, Maj. Gen. John B. Gordon's depleted corps attempted to break the Union lines and reach the supplies in Lynchburg. They pushed back Sheridan's cavalry briefly but found themselves faced with the full Union V Corps

V Corps (ACW)

The V Corps was a unit of the Union Army Army of the Potomac during the American Civil War....
. They were surrounded on three sides, and Lee surrendered his army. (The article on this battle includes details on the surrender negotiations and ceremony.)

Aftermath

The Appomattox Campaign was an example of masterful, relentless pursuit and maneuver by Grant and Sheridan, skills that had been in short supply by previous generals, such as Meade after Gettysburg

Battle of Gettysburg

The Battle of Gettysburg , fought in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, as part of the Gettysburg Campaign, was the battle with the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War and is frequently cited as the war's Turning point of the American Civil War....
and McClellan

George B. McClellan

George Brinton McClellan was a Major general during the American Civil War. He organized the famous Army of the Potomac and served briefly as the general-in-chief of the Union Army....
after Antietam

Battle of Antietam

The Battle of Antietam , fought on September 17, 1862, near Sharpsburg, Maryland, and Antietam Creek, as part of the Maryland Campaign, was the first major battle in the American Civil War to take place on Northern United States soil....
. Lee did the best he could under the circumstances, but his supplies, soldiers, and luck finally ran out. The surrender of Lee represented the loss of only one of the Confederate field armies, but it was a psychological blow from which the South did not recover. All of the remaining armies capitulated by June 1865.

Classifying the campaigns

Military historians do not agree on precise boundaries between the campaigns of this era. This article uses the classification maintained by the U.S. National Park Service

National Park Service

The National Park Service is the List of United States federal agencies that manages all List of areas in the United States National Park System, many U.S....
.

An alternative classification is maintained by West Point

United States Military Academy

The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational United States Service academies located at West Point, New York, New York....
; in their Atlas of American Wars (Esposito, 1959), the period of March 29 to March 31, including Five Forks, is considered to be in the end of "The Siege of Petersburg, II" (which started in October, 1864). The remainder of the war in Virginia is classified as "Pursuit to Appomattox Court House — The Defeat of Lee (3–9 April, 1865)".

Appomattox Campaign

Background

Battles

Union offensive

Confederate retreat

Aftermath

Classifying the campaigns

External links